Bachchhan Paandey, starring Akshay Kumar and Kriti Sanon, recorded a low weekend despite releasing on Holi. The film released in theatres on Friday with an opening of ₹13 crore and now stands at a three-day total of around ₹35 crore. The film was reportedly dominated by The Kashmir Files, which registered a second weekend total of approximately ₹71 crore.
Bachchhan Paandey is Akshay Kumar’s first release of the year and also stars Arshad Warsi and Jacqueline Fernandez. It is directed by Farhad Samji of Housefull 4 fame.
A Boxofficeindia.com report stated, “Bachchhan Pandey struggled on Sunday as mass belts were already getting Holi advantage on Saturday so never got that big Sunday boost while in the multiplexes it is all about The Kashmir Files.”
It further read, “The collections on Sunday will be around 11.5-12 crore nett as per early estimates for weekend of 34-35 crore nett which is a low collection. The film has not been able to go anywhere due to the domination of The Kashmir Files.”
Bachchhan Paandey received mixed reactions upon its release. The Hindustan Times review of the film read, “Bachchhan Paandey, as a whole, is a masala flick, which Akshay Kumar fans can’t complain about. With an interesting plot at hand, it could have been much better, but as of now, it’s surely a one-time-watch for those with a penchant for comedy.”
Meanwhile, The Kashmir Files continues to dominate theat The Vivek Agnihotri-directorial stars Anupam Kher, Darshan Kumaar, Pallavi Joshi, Puneet Issar, Mrinal Kulkarni and others. The film is based on the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits in then Jammu & Kashmir in 1990.
Mentioning the box office collection of The Kashmir Files, the report read, “The Kashmir Files has grossed around 27-28 crore nett on Sunday as per early estimates which will give it a second weekend of 71 crore nett plus.”